Ranking America’s Most Watched Televised Sporting Events in 2020
Every year millions of people gather around their television sets to view some of the best competitions in professional sports. From the NBA and NFL to NASCAR and the MLB, the most important events are televised throughout the country for all to see. Let’s take a look at how these matchups rank when it comes to viewership in the United States.
The Super Bowl
In the U.S., the National Football League’s biggest event, the Super Bowl, manages to draw millions of people to the television screens each year. Friends and loved ones gather from all over the country, forming viewing parties to watch football’s greatest game surrounded by a variety of dips and platters filled with finger food. It’s famous worldwide for being one of television’s biggest nights and is traditionally the most-watched program in the U.S. 2020 was no different with 99.9 million viewers tuning into FOX network to watch the Kansas City Chiefs face-off against the San Francisco 49ers in Miami Gardens. Some of the year’s best T.V. advertisements fight for a spot during commercial breaks, causing viewers to look forward to every part of the program- even when the game’s not on.
Many people find that the Super Bowl’s popularity lies in its ability to claim one winner after just one game. The NFL is one of the only major professional sporting leagues that doesn’t hold a series championship, like MLB’s World Series or the NBA Finals. Although the 2021’s game isn’t set to air on television until February 7th, fans are already organizing watch parties and checking expert Super Bowl futures odds in preparation for the big day. Even for people who have no interest in football, you can’t help but get a little anxious, exciting feeling in your stomach on Super Bowl Sunday. In America, this game isn’t just a sporting event, it’s a full-blown cultural phenomenon.
World Series
Baseball is America’s greatest pastime and one of the most popular sports in terms of participants and spectators, so it’s only fitting that its most important championship, the World Series, is watched by millions annually. Ironically, this year the fall classic saw a record drop in viewers with 9.6 million, the smallest TV audience in the game’s history. However, even with this decrease, it was one of the most-watched sporting events of the year in the U.S.
In 2016, the series’ 7th game had an average viewership of 40 million as a huge crowd of fans at home and abroad watched the Chicago Cubs face off against the Cleveland Indians in an exhilarating matchup. Ratings for the World Series are more spread out than for events like the Super Bowl which is just one event rather than 7 separate games. However, America’s love for baseball runs deep with devoted fans who have supported franchises like the Boston Red Sox and New York Yankees for as long as they’ve been alive.
Kentucky Derby
This year, a whopping 8.3 million people tuned to NBC to watch the iconic Kentucky Derby which took place in Louisville on September 5th. For fans of horse racing, this event is hands down the most important competition in the sport and followers will do everything possible for a live ticket. Having run every year since 1875, physical spectator attendance at the Derby ranks first in all of North America.
The prestigious event also ranks within the world’s top sports to place wagers on with millions of people worldwide studying horses and their performances to make the perfect bets. Traditionally, NBC is the platform host that has signed a contract to continue the tradition until at least 2025.
NBA Finals
Similar to the World Series, the NBA Finals was watched by fewer people than in previous years with 7.5 million viewers. Even still, it falls in fourth place when considering major sporting leagues’ televised events. Just five years ago in 2015, the Finals between the Golden State Warriors and Cleveland Cavaliers drew in more than 19 million viewers, the highest-rated series in ABC history.
While standard tickets to the games can range from $150 to $300, nice seats have been priced as high as 60k. However, thanks to the modern-day convenience of television, fans can tune in from anywhere in the U.S. and even abroad to watch their favorite teams go head-to-head.
